1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to one piece drumsticks having an axial tunnel from end to end and methods of making such drumsticks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Drumsticks go back to pre-history. There have probably been more changes in drumsticks in the past ten years than in the previous 10,000 years. The amount of energy transmitted by the drumstick to the drum is one of the major factors determining the sound. Energy is a function of the square of the velocity times the mass of the drumstick. Normally it is the tip only which strikes the drum or other musical instrument such as cymbals.
To appreciate the energy required by the drummer, one really has to see a good drummer in action. He strikes the drum with tremendous velocity and very little time elapses between impacts on the drum. He may play for hours. For these reasons, primarily, playing the drum is not only playing a musical instrument, but also an athletic event. A good drummer has to be a good athlete at least in relation to his drumming. There has been a tendancy toward lighter drumsticks. Because of the light weight of modern drumsticks and the tremendous velocities at impact, Drumsticks break relatively frequently. A set of drumsticks of typical prior art design lasts about one night.
It is well known that a hollow cylinder is stronger than a solid cylinder of the same sectional mass and other characteristics. This is why bridges are built with girders comprising thin perpendicular members such as a T or H cross-section instead of solid members. Apparently making material into a hollow cylinder shape permits the material to resist breaking or bending because there is a leverage advantage in having part of the material disposed farther from the material axis or other parts of material.
In addition, a drumstick which is totally hollow along its entire length vibrates differently than any other type of drumstick so that the sound generated when the drumstick hits the drum is slightly different. In a day when there are thousands of musicians not earning big money for everyone who is, a slightly different sound has been associated with many successful musicians and bands and anything which gives a band an ability to sound different can be a critical advantage in the subjective world of band sounds.
Part of the reason why hollow drumsticks, in spite of their other advantages, have not caught on is because, on information and belief, no one has previously made a hollow one piece drumstick. It has always been possible theoretically to make a hollow one piece drumstick. For example, you could make a solid drumstick, then drill a hole through it. Unfortunately, all prior art hollow drumsticks were economically impossible to make. Because of the advantages of hollow drumsticks, the prior art does disclose drumsticks which are hollow almost all the way through or drumsticks which are not one piece but are hollow all the way through. An example of the latter is Lucas, No. 4,202,241. Applicant's prior drumstick, Donohoe, No. 4,320,688, filed 12/8/80 and issued 3/23/82 has many of the advantages of the present invention, but is not quite ideal.
What is needed is a hollow one piece drumstick fabricated from a very strong material so that it will last about ten times as long as prior art drumsticks. The one piece construction reduces cost, increases strength, gives a slightly different sound characteristic, and possesses other advantages as set forth previously. Drumsticks manufactured according to the method set forth in the present application lasts about ten times as long as the most durable prior art drumsticks of similar weight and balance. Because drumsticks hit the drum thousands of times before breaking and are normally totally undamaged until one hit causes damage, even a slight increase in ability to resist damage from that one hit can and does increase the life of the drumstick by a factor of ten or more.